New Tank

[AquaGirl]

This is my first post so here goes. :D I've never had Discus but decided to go for it. I've had freshwater/marine for years now so I'm not a complete newbie. Right now one of my tanks is a 55gal with 2 Silver Dollars, 1 Angel fish and a Two-spot catfish. I would like to add some Discus to this and want to find out what you think. The tank has some rocks and three large pieces of driftwood with some plastic plants. At the moment the substrate is a small layer of river rock but I would like to use some sort of sand or similar small sized base. I'm using an AquaClear 110, and the PH remains around 6.6. Any siggestions/comments? Thanx in advance! :D

[flukes]

Ok first things first, A silver dollar will out compete with discus and discus need too be the dominant species of the tank. Angles can carry parasites that dont effect them but can be dangerous too discus. And depending on each catfish they can suck on the slime coat of the discus leaving a nasty sore.

To tell you the truth you want too make you first discus experience as easy as possible, otherwise it will just be nightmare and you will wonder how people do it.

So the best bet would start a tank just for discus, maybe some cory's and a couple of bn's for cleaning.

It will make your life a whole lot easier..

[AquaGirl]

Thanx Flukes. I had a feeling the four fish wouldn't fair well with Discuss. I've been coonsidering selling/trading them since I've no more room for another tank. :lol: So once they've been given new homes what do you think of the tank/filter etc.?

[flukes]

An aquaclear 100, might not be enough for a 55gal. Id throw in a couple of sponge filters too hhelp out a bit. Also will it still be planted?

A ph of 6.6 is fine but if your using addatives too get it there your better of just keeping it stable. Stable parameters is essential for discus.

Also with young you must keep up regular water changes, high nitrates in my opinion is one of the biggest causes of stunting..

[Proteus]

FYI, the AC110 is an awesum choice...


- For 60 - 110 U.S. Gal. Aquariums
- Patented Refiltration System provides optimal mechanical, chemical and biological filtration
- Maximum Output: 1892 L/h (500 U.S. Gal./h)
- Full Flow Control: 630 L/h (166 U.S. Gal./h)
- Power Consumption: 14 W
- Maximum Aquarium Capacity: 110 U.S. Gal. (415 L)

AquaClear have re-branded all there filters, which we will see here soon...

ACMini = AC20 (100gph recommended for tanks up to 20g)
AC150 = AC30 (150gph " " 30g)
AC200 = AC50 (200gph " " 50g)
AC300 = AC70 (300gph " " 70g)
AC500 = AC110 (500gph " " 110g)

HTH

[flukes]

Ahhh opps, i thought the 110was litres, i cant keep up with this why cant the yanks just turn metric..

[Proteus]

lol... dont start that argument

[AquaGirl]

Yes, please don't get into metric! :lol:

Actually I've never had to add suppliments to get a ph of 6.6. My parameters have always been 0's, (nitrate, nitrite, ammonia etc.). I'm very experienced with this because of my marine reef aquarium. Corals definately need stable environments! :D

[flukes]

Sounds good then!

(I'll leave the metric arguement for another day..!)

[Merrilyn]

Hi aquagirl and welcome to the forum. Sounds like you have a lovely set up there. With that size tank, you can easily have 5 or even 6 adult discus. The substrate you already have sounds fine for discus, but if you want to go with sand, we here is Oz mostly use pool filter sand in our tanks. It is totally inert and looks good. It is also a good medium for live plants if you want to go that way.

The only suggestions I would have is to remove the rocks, as they are a bit hard on discus, and check the current from the outflow of your filter. Discus come from the still waters of the Amazon and do not cope well with strong currents in their tank.

With your experience in marine, you will find it easy to keep your discus happy. Good luck, and again, welcome.

[AquaGirl]

Thanx Merrilyn. I do like the look of sand better so I think I'll go for that as my substrate.

'Course I'm gonna have to put off everything until I get home. I'm off to Florida tomorrow! 8-) That is if I can dig a path in the snow to my car! So I'll see you all when I get back!